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A8 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 12, 2016 Herald Sports PREP ROUNDUP Boys soccer PRESCOTT, Wash. — The Irrigon Knights boys soccer team dropped its second game of the year on Saturday afternoon, coming up short on the road against Prescott, Washington, 4-1. “It just was not our day,” Irrigon coach Paul Keefer said. “We did not play together defensively, didn’t communicate well enough which was a little frustrating.” Junior midielder and team captain Alejandro Alvarez scored Irrigon’s (4-2- 1, 1-1-1) only goal of the game, boom- ing one into the net unassisted in the 14th minute, which tied the game at 1-1. Prescott scored the go-ahead goal one minute before halftime for the 2-1 lead, and then added goals in the 55th and 75th minutes of the second half to inish off the scoring. Keefer added that while the Knights defense struggled, he was happy with what his offense brought to the ield — even if the team only managed one goal. “We pushed the ball up quite often, but just couldn’t push it into the back of the net often enough,” he said. Irrigon now has a week to prepare for its next game at City Christian Saturday at 1 p.m. IHS (4-2-1) ——— PHS (2-1-1) 1 0 — 1 2 2 — 4 FOOTBALL VALE 34, IRRIGON 28, — Not many people were giving the young Irrigon Knights much of a chance against the defending 3A state champion Vale Vi- kings on Friday night, but the Knights made the trip and nearly pulled off the upset. Vale had to get to overtime before they could inally put the stingy Knights away with a 34-28 victory. “I think our kids faith in our process grew a little bit tonight,” Irrigon coach Steve Sheller said. “Vale just out-exe- cuted us tonight.” Josh Aguilera led Irrigon’s stable of running backs with 130 yards and two touchdowns on 27 carries. Carlos Zacarias added 117 yards and a touch- down on 10 carries and Lino Covarru- bia ran for 89 yards and a touchdown as well. Quarterback Austin Rice had one of his best games of the season, completing 8-9 passes for 115 yards and zero turnovers. Sheller said that the Knights are frus- trated with the result, mainly because the Knights had a chance to win the game in regulation. Irrigon had a 1st and goal inside the 10 yard line twice in the fourth quarter, and didn’t score either time. “We just didn’t execute the play,” Sheller said. Irrigon will now regroup and get ready for a home game against Nyssa on Friday. ——— IHS (2-4, 1-1) 14 14 — 28 VHS (3-3, 2-0) 7 13 — 34 0 0 0 0 8 6 HEPPNER 52, PILOT ROCK 20 — At Heppner, the Mustangs scored in all phases of the game to beat the Rockets in Columbia Basin Conference action on Friday. Kevin Murray returned an intercep- tion 51 yards for a touchdown after he stepped in front of a screen pass, Jake Lindsay scored on a 96-yard punt return, Coby Daugherty returned a kickoff 88 yards to pay dirt, and Logan Grieb added 110 yards rushing with touchdowns on the ground and in the air. Pilot Rock (0-5, 0-1 CBC) didn’t get on the scoreboard until the fourth quarter and was led by Devin Hasher’s 128 rushing yards with one touchdown. Heppner (5-1, 2-0) coach Greg Grant said he was content with his team’s defensive play, but their 227 total yards on offense left much to be desired as the Mustangs had trouble with their blocking. “I thought Pilot Rock was improved and to those guys’ credit they played hard the whole game,” he said. “I guess I was pleased with how we played defensively, we had one break- down on the long pass play but defen- sively we were pretty consistent.” Heppner is at Culver next Friday at 7 p.m. ——— PRHS (0-5, 0-1) 0 0 0 20 — 20 HHS (5-1, 2-0) 16 12 12 12 — 52 Scoring plays 1st Quarter HHS — Coby Daugherty 6 run (Beau Walters run), 5:41, 8-0 HHS — Jake Lindsay 96 punt return (Logan Grieb from Kevin Smith), 1:37, 16-0 2nd Quarter HHS — Beau Walters 19 pass from Kevin Smith (pass failed), 11:08, 22-0 HHS — Logan Grieb 15 pass from Kevin Smith (pass failed), 8:38, 28-0 3rd Quarter HHS — Logan Grieb 43 run (pass failed), 7:25, 34-0 HHS — Kevin Murray 51 interception return (pass failed), 4:06, 40-0 4th Quarter HHS — Beau Walters 22 pass from Kevin Smith (run failed), 11:59, 46-0 PRHS — Chris Weinke 22 pass from Logan Weinke (kick good), 9:04, 46-7 HHS — Coby Daugherty 88 kick return (run failed), 8:34, 52-7 PRHS — Cody Watson 23 pass from Logan Weinke (kick good), 3:52, 52-14 PRHS — Devin Hasher 30 run (kick blocked), 1:43, 52-20. Individual stats PASSING — Pilot Rock (5-12-1, 127, 2 TD): Logan Weinke 3-4-0, 74, 2 TD; Chris Weinke 2-8-1, 53. Heppner: Kevin Smith 6-10-0, 69, 3 TD. RUSHING — Pilot Rock (37-160, TD): Devin Hasher 25-128, TD; Chris Weinke 9-28; Anthony Matomoros 3-4. Heppner (31-158, 2 TD): Logan Grieb 11-110, TD; Coby Daugherty 15-59, TD: Gavin Hanna 1-11; Kevin Smith 1-(-9); Amund Berg 1-(-2); Team 2-(-11). RECEIVING — Pilot Rock: Chris Weinke 3-51, TD; Cody Watson 2-23, TD; Nychael Speaker 1-42; Devin Hasher 1-11. Heppner; Beau Walters 4-50, 2 TD; Logan Grieb 1-15, TD: Jake Lindsay 1-4. UMATILLA 34, RIVERSIDE 0 — At Boardman, the Vikings bounced back from their only loss of the season in a big way by earning their second shutout for an Eastern Oregon League win over their rival. Trent Durfey and Kaden Webb starred on both sides of the ball to lead Umatilla (5-1, 1-1 EOL) to victory. Durfey had two interceptions and also added a 25-yard touchdown run in the irst quarter. Webb also grabbed one pick on defense, then ran for a pair of touchdowns while throwing two more on offense. Umatilla was able to beneit from good ield position as well, and inished with just 290 total yards on offense. “It was a good bounce back from the loss to Burns,” said Umatilla coach Dan Durfey. “I was hoping the kids would respond well to that and they did.” No statistics were reported for Riverside (1-5, 0-2). Next up, Umatilla will host Vale and Riverside will host Burns, both on Friday at 7 p.m. UHS (5-1, 1-1) 13 8 6 7 — 34 RHS (1-5, 0-2) 0 0 0 0 — 0 Scoring plays 1st Quarter UHS — Trent Durfey 25 run (kick See ROUNDUP, A9 Follow sports on Twitter @HHeraldSports JAMES, NEAL SHINE IN BULLDOGS WIN James throws six touchdown passes in blowout By ERIC SINGER Staff Writer Friday night’s game be- tween Hermiston and Rid- geview turned into the An- drew James and Dayshawn Neal show. At quarterback, James tossed a career-high six touchdown passes and completed 16-20 passes for 255 yards and no intercep- tions, while Neal hauled in six catches for 156 yards and four touchdowns. Their performances led their Bulldogs team to a domi- nating 54-0 victory over the Ridgeview Ravens at Ken- nison Field. “I just ran my routes and was lucky enough to get open,” Neal said after the game. “Andrew was great tonight and just got me the ball. “It was nice to have a win like this.” It was the 10th total time this season that James and Neal had hooked up for touchdowns, giving Herm- iston (3-3, 3-1 Special Dis- trict 1) a powerful passing game threat that could be key down the stretch. “I trust him a lot and the stats are showing that,” James said. The Hermiston offense as a whole put the pedal to the loor in the game, put- ting up more than 400 total yards of offense and inish- ing all but two drives with touchdowns. The Bulldogs also had their irst turn- over-free game of the year. “It felt amazing,” James said. “You could tell after the irst (touchdown) that we had something good go- ing.” Hermiston’s defense was just as outstanding, earning its irst shutout of the season and doing so in utter domi- nance. The Bulldogs forced three turnovers — two fum- bles and one interception — and held Ridgeview (1- 5, 1-3) to under 150 yards of total offense. To add on, Hermiston did not allow Ridgeview to cross mid- ield until the 2:17 mark in the second quarter, and the Ravens only saw the other side of the ield two more times the entire game. Linebacker Damien Mc- STAFF PHOTO BY E.J. HARRIS Hermiston’s Jonathan Hinkle runs the ball on his way to a touchdown in the Bulldogs’ 54-0 win against Ridgeview on Friday in Hermiston. Leod said that the defense spent a lot of time on the practice ield and in the ilm room this week, and felt very prepared for the run-heavy Ravens. “They’re a running team, all they do is run,” McLeod said. “We have great coaches that told us what to do, we stacked the box and we just bought in and the scoreboard speaks for itself.” McLeod was also happy to be on the smiling side of the scoreboard Friday. The senior transferred to Herm- iston before the season after spending the previous three years of high school at Rid- geview, and admitted it was a little odd for him to start. “I’ve played with most of those guys before, but never played against them,” McLeod said. “A few of my good buddies I’ve played with since third grade ... it was a little different, but it was a lot of fun for sure.” Hermiston made it clear from the irst drive of the game that it had something to prove, inding holes in the Ravens defense by running and throwing. The Bulldogs quickly advanced down to the 10 yard line, where James connected with Jerry Ramirez for the game’s irst touchdown with 7:40 left in the irst STAFF PHOTO BY E.J. HARRIS Hermiston’s Jerry Ramirez (33) celebrates a touchdown with Andrew James (8) in the end zone in the Bulldogs’ 54-0 win against Ridgeview on Friday in Hermiston. quarter. Ramirez added a second touchdown later in the half and inished with four catches in the game. On Ridgeview’s ensu- ing drive, the Ravens found themselves deep in their own territory facing a third- and-long. That’s when quarterback Blaine Gibbs dropped back to pass, rolled to his left and fumbled the ball as he got hit. Hermis- ton recovered the fumble at the Ridgeview six poised for another score. And the Bulldogs didn’t wait long as Jonathan Hin- kle barreled his way into the end zone for the six- yard score to put Hermiston up 14-0 with just under six minutes to play in the irst quarter. Hinkle inished the game with nine carries for 41 yards and the score. Hermiston went on to score four more times in the half, but none were more impressive than the inal score. Staring at a 2nd & 11 from his own 30, James took the snap and dropped three steps back before locking on to a streaking Dayshawn Neal running down the near sideline. James rocked back and threw the perfectly spi- raling ball like a rainbow to Neal, who fought off the Ridgeview defensive back at the opposite 40 yard line. After the catch, Neal See BULLDOGS, A9 Pirates manage to hold off Vikings Riverside gets win over rival Umatilla By MATT ENTRUP Staff Writer Sometimes all it takes is being in the right place at the right time. The Riverside Pirates put themselves in position, then got a couple fortunate breaks for two empty-net goals to beat Umatilla, 2-1, in District 2 girls soccer on Thursday. The rivalry match-up was played at a brisk pace from the opening kick as both teams looked to be the aggressor, and when the game went to intermission still knotted in a scoreless tie, both teams could sense they were about to break through. “I told my team there’s probably going to be a few goals in the second half, it’s going to happen,” Umatilla coach Tim Lee said. “We had to jump on it, right now,” said Riverside junior Skylar Wightman of a sense of urgency felt in the Pirate huddle. “We had to get a goal somehow, ind a way.” About 10 minutes into the second half Wightman found a way, and got the Pi- rates (3-3-1, 3-0-1 SD2) on the scoreboard irst when she was there to clean up a loose ball in front of the net after Karina Llamas touched it past Umatilla goalkeeper Maria Moreno. Unshaken, the Vikings (3-4-1, 2-2) continued to attack and got the equaliz- er about ive minutes later when Jocelyn Guardado controlled a long free-kick by Mayra Ortiz near the top of the box, beat her defend- er to the right, then shot back across the goal to beat Riverside goalkeeper Abi- gail Hernandez far corner. It was a pretty shot that Hernandez said she got a good look at, “It was just one of those goals where you barely can’t get it.” Riverside was quick- ly back down in front of Umatilla’s net with a corner kick, which didn’t result in a goal but did see Moreno land awkwardly after going airborne to turn away the threat. She stayed on the turf for several minutes while the coaching staff attended to her before limping to the sideline with a twisted an- kle. STAFF PHOTO BY MATT ENTRUP Riverside’s Skylar Wightman (7) jukes Umatilla’s Patty Burres (6) prior to centering the ball to teammate Brendy Avalos for the game-winning goal in a girls soccer game on Thursday in Boardman. Riverside won 2-1. “She honestly just want- ed to take a quick break and get back in there,” Lee said. “She’s our rock whether she’s on the ield or in the goal.” But she wasn’t able to make it back in before the Pirates could take advan- tage of Moreno’s freshman backup. At about the 65th min- ute, Wightman penetrated to the end line, faked out Umatilla defender Patty Burres and lofted the ball to the front of the net where Brendy Avalos stood all alone. Avalos redirected the ball into the empty goal for the eventual game-winner. “With Maria going down for the second time with her ankle, I think it kind of pushed us into a little defensive mindset and al- lowed them to get that sec- ond goal,” said Lee. Moreno checked back in after the goal, and the Vikings were able to ad- vance the ball deep into Riverside’s half repeatedly during the inal minutes, but just couldn’t get off a clean shot with Pirates sweeper Faith Rosen lead- ing the defensive stand. Winning close games wasn’t something the Pi- rates were able to do last season, but each of their last two wins have come by a single goal and coach Carlos Velasco said it’s a result of a mindset the team established early in the year. “They’ve been preparing mentally and physical a lot better, and they’ve got in their head what they need to do and what they want to do, and where they want to go,” he said. “I believe it’s a big mind change on their part, and I’m happy for them.” The win keeps River- side atop the SD2 standings while Umatilla dropped to fourth with six more games to play. ——— UHS 0 1 — 1 RHS 0 2 — 2 Goals 50’— RHS Skylar Wightman (Karina Llamas) 55’— UHS Jocelyn Guardado (Mayra Ortiz) 65’— RHS Brendy Avalos (Skylar Wightman) ——— Contact Matt Entrup at (541) 966-0838.